Newbie--any advice please

Seahawk72

Currently going through a divorce process after 20 years--still both living in the same house, both kids adults and in their own places. My question is what am I responsible for financially--I know that the mortgage, council tax, power and so on is mandatory--I earn around 3 times more per month--both incomes go into a joint account --the mortgage is joint as are the direct debits--the property is jointly owned.
I have the ability to work a substantial amount of overtime, and this is the main point of my post--can I transfer that overtime money out into another account or is it still classed a 'joint' income--could I even have my entire income paid into another account and transfer into the joint one in order to simply cover the bills, or am I obliged to do more ??
Thank-you

tacpot12

There is no obligation on you to put any of your income into a joint account.

Your only obligations are to a) pay your share of the joints costs you have; mortgage, Council Tax, Utility Bills, Broadband, etc. b) to declare all your income and assets on the financial statement to the Court.

You could have your salary paid to an account in your name, and setup a standing order to pay a set amount each month into the joint account. Your spouse will probably feel better if they do the same. 

You may be able to agree that you will still do certain shopping together, e.g. for loo roll, washing up liquid, milk, etc., in which case you might also pay your contribution to these directly to your spouse if you have agreed that they will buy these items as part of their regular shopping. 

It would be as well to discuss the change you are going to make and explain your reason for it before you change anything (even if the reason is just that it would make you feel more in control -  you are in a situation where I dare say you don't feel that you have much control of anything). You can use the conversation as an opportunity to confirm that you will be honest when declaring your assets and income.

dreaming

When my husband and I separated, one of the first things I did was to open a new current account in my name and then transfer half of the mortgage into the joint account. Luckily we were on amicable terms and he did the same until the house was sold, when we split the equity and bought our own properties. As I remained in the marital house until the sale went through all the council tax and utility bills were transferred to my name only. Obviously if there is a mismatch between incomes then you may wish to pay more than your partner but be aware that you will both be responsible for any bills that are joint, or bank charges if your ex refuses to pay an agreed amount. and as you are both still there then you should discuss (if possible) the financial split. Personally I would prefer to have my salary paid into my own account then transfer the cash to a joint account rather than the other way round to avoid the possibility that your ex  could also transfer cash out to their own account. Are you able to speak about this with the other party, and have you agreed to division of assets? Our children were also financially independent  so we agreed the division between ourselves (each taking "their" possesions (e.g. books, records etc.), the furniture was also divided by agreement, but we did a straight 50/50 split on house proceeds.

Brie

Don't forget that a financial split will include both of your pensions and all other accounts, ISAs etc.  It's not just the house.

pinkshoes

Seahawk72 said:

Currently going through a divorce process after 20 years--still both living in the same house, both kids adults and in their own places. My question is what am I responsible for financially--I know that the mortgage, council tax, power and so on is mandatory--I earn around 3 times more per month--both incomes go into a joint account --the mortgage is joint as are the direct debits--the property is jointly owned.
I have the ability to work a substantial amount of overtime, and this is the main point of my post--can I transfer that overtime money out into another account or is it still classed a 'joint' income--could I even have my entire income paid into another account and transfer into the joint one in order to simply cover the bills, or am I obliged to do more ??
Thank-you

I see from your other post that your ex has been playing games and been making accusations so you can no longer live in the house.

A) Set up your own bank account and have all your salary paid into it. Absolutely do NOT have it paid into a joint account!

B ) As you're living elsewhere, then you need to decide what is affordable and what is sensible.

1. One option is to transfer your half of the mortgage into the joint account each month. As you're not living there then you shouldn't be paying bills, so contact the relevant suppliers and let them know ASAP. 
2. As you've had two good offers on the house and your ex is refusing to accept, then clearly s/he is playing a game. You could stop paying your half of the mortgage, and if they can't pay it, the house will get repossessed. This will have a HUGE impact on your credit rating though.
3. You play hardball, and tell your ex that if she doesn't accept the offers, you will be forcing the sale of the house and make sure all costs associated with this will be deducted from her share of the equity.